The small but welcoming village of Hofsos. The black buildings in the foreground make up the Icelandic Emigration Center and behind it is a fine restaurant. PIC franjpr
S hould small welcoming places be to your liking on your travels then perhaps the teeny weeny village of Hofsos in the North of Iceland would light your fire.
It may not look much with its 200 inhabitants and all but six or seven streets but Hofsos could surprise if you spend some time here. Not only do you have a really fine view across Skagafjordur bay to the vast sea and the majestic Drangey island but a boat trip from here straight North would eventually take you to the North Pole.
Now, Hofsos is not an entertainment mecca by any stretch of the imagination. But it does have a couple of things going for it.
Apart from feeling more “closer” to nature here due to the village being very sparsely populated than in most other places the village boast of probably one of the more important museums in the country. Vesturfarasetrið, Icelandic Emigration Center, is housed in a beautiful old wooden building by the small harbor area in town. The museum illustrates the histories of the thousands of Icelanders leaving the country in late 1800´s for better pastures. Most left for Canada and the United States but a small number went all the way to Brazil. The hardships are well documented here as well as life for the immigrants in their new surroundings. The center is only open during summertime from June to September but daily between 11 and 18.
Hofsos does boast of a nice swimming pool and horse rental is available on nearby farms. Other services include a gas station and a convenience store. A small guesthouse, Sunnuberg, is here also with five rooms and spaces for backpackers.
Here also is a decent restaurant in a nice old building right by the Emigration Center. Solvik restaurant is located right behind the Emigration Center.
» The reason the Icelandic Emigration Center is located in this small dot on the map is that back in the days Hofsos village was amongst the most important harbor towns in the country
» The Ring Road will take you close. Driving east turn left on road 76 on the way to Siglufjordur town. Bus trips are available from Reykjavik all year
» Many tiny villages in Iceland are not worth much for visitors but there is something about Hofsos. It won´t take you much time to explore it if you have time to spare and the Emigration Center is worth visiting in any case.
View The village of Hofsos Iceland in a larger map
